Is training "typical" around the world?

[ZilphaK]

Just curious....

I've been in rinks where skaters who have gone to singles Nationals at Novice - Senior have trained.

In general, these skaters seem to skate twice a day (a.m. and p.m.) on M-F, a total of three 45-60 minute sessions (sometimes more) and a session or two on Saturday.

They seem to have some sort of lesson each day -- jumps or choreography or running programs under coach's direct watch.

Is this pretty much how the rest of the world trains?

Or rather, aspires to train as a 'best practices' -- I understand that best case scenarios don't take into consideration what is is actually available or what money individual skaters have to train.

 

[sharsk8s]

I think it depends on the discipline the school focuses on and the country. I know most european programs are more of a group lesson style where although a coach might be focusing on one person/pair at certain times, no one has scheduled lesson times and there are multiple people/pairs on the ice together. Usually there is one coaching group/team at a rink which all the skaters train under. In that one group they might have multiple jumps/spin coaches, choreographers, off ice coaches, etc who work with everyone at the rink. The european style is much more structured with students from the coaching group usually doing on and off ice together and are separated by level. Also many rinks only each one discipline in europe. In the US it is different. Usually multiple different coaches with no association give lessons at the same time on a session provided by the rink. Although you might have the same coach as someone else, you usually have an appointed lesson time where you have one on one interaction with a coach and are practicing on your own with no coach supervision most of the time when you are not in a lesson.

I personally think that the european method of coaching groups (ex: Mishin, Tutberdize, Gadbois, Velikov) is better because you get much more out of the ice time since there is more direction and you are less likely to make bad habits which will not be corrected by the coach. Also it is overall more structured and well-rounded. I guess the US method might be better for someone who needs a coaches 100% attention all the time. The problem with US coaching is there are often people from different levels and disciplines all on the ice at the same time making it very difficult to be productive, while in the european method since everyone is from the same coaching group ice time is usually separated by level and everyone is working on similar things.

 

[gkelly]

So how much ice time do skaters at each level get in the group system?

Can the group schedules work for skaters with a variety of needs outside the ice time (e.g., how long it takes them to travel between rink and home, rink and school -- when they need to be in school and when they can get off)? Or is the group training a take it-or-leave it proposition: If you can't arrive and leave on time every day, you can't keep up with the group, there are no other options for skaters at your level in this location? So either you rearrange the rest of your life and your family's life around the available training times, or you give up your hope of skating at all and find some other sport or other activity entirely?

 

[ZilphaK]

I'm also curious as to whether the 15-20 hours a week on ice is a minimum needed for reaching elite levels. Can kids do all they need to do to reach elite in the USA or Russia or Japan with fewer on-ice hours?

 

[sharsk8s]

Most camps I know only do around 4 hours a day which I guess might seem like a lot but it is usually split into two 2 hour sessions. I know many top skaters who were still able to go to school by doing a session in the morning and a session in the afternoon. It seems most of the elite skaters that are still in school do different specialized programs (either homeschooling or a school which can adapt to their schedule such as Sambo70)

 

[aliceanne]

I'm also curious as to whether the 15-20 hours a week on ice is a minimum needed for reaching elite levels. Can kids do all they need to do to reach elite in the USA or Russia or Japan with fewer on-ice hours?

I seem to remember reading somewhere (Skating magazine?) that USFS recommended that if you plan to take their tests that you practice 10 hours a week. To be internationally competitive you would need to exceed the test requirements by a great degree.